The field of the present invention is rigid connector assemblies particularly adaptable for mounting systems used for body mounted camera equipment.
In the mid-1970""s, mounting systems were developed for motion picture cameras which were used to mount the camera on the body of an operator. These systems were designed to very substantially isolate the motion of the supporting body from the camera. At the same time, the systems provided suspending support for the camera. The supported camera was capable of being lightly guided by the hand of the operator who could move the camera horizontally in all directions, either relative to his body or with his body as he moved about. The camera could also be raised or lowered with a relatively light touch. A number of patents have issued on these early systems. They include U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,017,168; 4,156,512; 4,208,028 and 4,394,075, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
More recently, refinements to such systems have been considered. Refinements have been made in the type and variety of equipment which can be attached to such systems. Greater versatility is, therefor, of interest. A more recently developed body mounted camera support system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,030,130, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. A gimbal for attaching the mounting system to the support arms is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,054, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Various devices which can be mounted to such a mounting system are illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 5,737,657 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,752,112, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. Connector assemblies for attaching such equipment to the mounting tube of the mounting system are also disclosed.
The environment for use of such systems is typically the movie industry. Body mounted cameras are most frequently used where there is a physical demand for irregular camera movement. One well known example of the use of such body mounted camera equipment was the chase scene through a redwood forest in the Star Wars(trademark) movie The Return of the Jedi. A cameraman with a body mounted camera filmed his progress while walking through a redwood forest. The film was then run at high speed to achieve the effect of rapid motion. With such diverse conditions and the growing amount of equipment which can be employed on such systems, attention has been focused on the connector assemblies. A variety of attributes are of interest. Quick connect and disconnect, rigid and safe retention, tactile locking, low weight and minimum size are desired attributes for such connectors. Passage through the center of the connector for conduits and the like is also advantageous.
The present invention is directed to a connector assembly having two connectors which are axially engageable. A first coupling is provided by a cylindrical surface with grooves therein on the first connector cooperating with radial pins on the second connector. The connector assembly further includes an angular interlock and an axial lock providing additional engagement. The coupling of the grooves and the radial pins provides a first engagement with the pins in an axial entry portion of the grooves, a second engagement with the pins in a circumferential portion of the grooves and a third engagement with the pins in an axial seating portion of the grooves.
In a first separate aspect of the present invention, the angular interlock of the connector assembly includes two engaging surfaces, one on each connector. These engaging surfaces are arranged such that they remain disengaged until the third engagement of the connectors.
In a second separate aspect of the present invention, the angular interlock of the first aspect of the present invention includes angularly spaced axial pins on one connector with axial sockets on the other. The pins and sockets may include mating conical surfaces. Additionally, there may be three such pins to insure a planar engagement seat. The sockets may be provided in the integer multiples of the three pins to provide additional angular flexibility of the connectors.
In a third separate aspect of the present invention, the axial lock of the connector assembly includes a locking element which is a threaded locking ring rotatably and axially slidably mounted to one of the connectors with the other connector including a mating threaded surface for engagement with the locking element.
In a fourth separate aspect of the present invention, the connector assembly is incorporated with a mounting system for body mounted camera equipment. The connector assembly is mounted to one end of a tube which is, in turn, mounted to a three-axis gimbal intermediate the ends.
In a fifth separate aspect of the present invention, the foregoing separate aspects are contemplated to be advantageously employed in combination.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved connector assembly which is not limited to but which has particular applicability to mounting systems for body mounted camera equipment. Other and further advantages will appear hereinafter.